Discovering the Difference Between a Path and a Road (DKB)

Post a Comment » Written on December 6th, 2011     
Filed under: Leadership, Vision
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It is extremely easy, either in our daily tasks at work or in our interactions with family and friends, to have a tendency to pursue roads, rather than follow the paths that follow the natural contours of our life. In my vocational ministry experience, so much of my time has been given to building bridges and roads that move those I have ministered to from one place to another. I am thankful for the recent encouragement and reminder to instead help those I serve to discern and discover the natural contours of their heart, in the hopes that they will know they heart of God and have theirs match.

“The difference between a path and a road is not only the obvious one. A path is a little more than a habit that comes with knowledge of a place. It is a sort of ritual familiarity. As a form, it is a form of contact with a known landscape. It is not destructive. It is the perfect adaptation, through experience and familiarity, of movement to place; it obeys the natural contours; such obstacles as it meets it goes around. A road, on the other hand, even the most primitive road, embodies a resistance against the landscape. Its reason is not simply the necessity for movement, but haste. Its wish is to avoid contact with the landscape; it seeks so far as possible to go over the country, rather than through it; its aspiration, as we see clearly in the example of our modern freeways, is to be a bridge; its tendency is to translate place into space in order to traverse it with the least effort. It is destructive, seeking to remove or destroy all obstacles in its way. The primitive road advanced by the destruction of the forest; modern roads advance by destruction of topography.”  (Wendell Berry p. 12, The Art of the Commonplace)

 




A Historic Gathering at a Historic Place

Post a Comment » Written on November 1st, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality, Inspiring Stories
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This week in Minneapolis, pastors and lay leaders from 21 established Covenant churches are gathering together at First Covenant Church – a historic church that is experiencing tremendous revitalization.  We are joining together to kick off the Navigate journey – a 12 to 14 month experience of walking the congregational vitality pathway with other churches nearby in our regions.

Jesus said “for where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them” (Matthew 18:20).   Might the Holy Spirit do something extra special when 2 or 3 churches gather in his name to walk the congregational vitality pathway?  And when Paul wrote to the churches, he wanted the letter circulated between them for mutual edification and instruction (Colossians 4:16).  Paul also recognized the impact of Epaphras who is working hard for the churches in three cities:  Colossae, Laodicea and Hierapolis (Colossians 4:13). Continue Reading »




Vitality Discussion

1 Comment » Written on October 27th, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality Pathway, Inspiring Stories
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The recording of the Take One discussion from earlier today is now online and available for viewing. A big thanks to the round-table participants who made the discussion possible with their experience and expertise! The video can be found here.




Take One: One Topic One Hour

Post a Comment » Written on October 25th, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality, Inspiring Stories
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On Thursday, October 27, at 10:30 a.m. (CDT), Congregational Vitality is hosting our first webcast. We are telling the story of how God is moving at First Covenant Church in Rockford, Illinois. This is a very historic church in the ECC. It was organized in 1900. One year ago, FCC was invited to join Navigate, a co-hort of churches walking the congregational vitality pathway. Their story will inspire you.

We will hear from the pastor and a few lay leaders: Real people in real places doing real ministry. If you want to be encouraged and equipped, please join us.

Catch it live. Go to CovChurch.tv and look for the Congregational Vitality webcast. You will have an opportunity to send in your questions as well. You can view the live webcast here.

As the Holy Spirit continues to strengthen established churches in the Covenant, there are many good stories emerging. These stories draw our attention to Jesus, the head of the Church. More and more established churches are making bold healthy missional decisions, decisions that God is blessing. We want to honor those congregations by telling their story.

Fruit is human activity touched by the Holy Spirit. This fruit brings glory to God and good to our neighbors. We cannot do the work of the Spirit in the power of the flesh. This is one of the core values undergirding the vitality movement in the Covenant.

In the coming months, we are upping the ante when it comes to communication. We will say the same often in many different ways: Established churches can experience the new wine of the Spirit. We pray that these stories put a joy in your step and a song in your heart.




Health Exam (DKB)

Post a Comment » Written on October 14th, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality, Healthy Missional, Inspiring Stories

When we are sick or not feeling too well, often times we look to the aid of medical professionals to diagnose the cause and offer helpful remedies and quick fixes so that we can be on our way back to our normal vibrant life. This type of assessment is a helpful way to understand what is currently happening in our bodies so that we can adjust and right ourselves. We trust the doctors advice because they have been trained, educated, equipped, and accredited. Also, there is a standard set for what a healthy human body functions like.

In looking to how churches strive and seek to be healthy and missional, similarities can be seen. God has given us Continue Reading »




Updated Resources Available

Post a Comment » Written on September 22nd, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality, Resources

Part of the joy of being involved in the Congregational Vitality movement of the Evangelical Covenant Church is when people work with the ministry resources provided and create something on their own. Recently, two such projects were sent in to us for distribution to churches who are walking the Congregational Vitality Pathway. A brief summary of each project is provided below. Continue Reading »




The Message and Mission of the Church

2 comments Written on July 17th, 2011     
Filed under: CO-OP, Congregational Vitality, Leadership

As a follow up to our last post, we want to take some time to share insights shared at the Co-Op Connection: Peer Workshop relating to the message and mission of the Church. The following messages and missions flow out of the message and mission of Christ.

What are your observations about this list?

1: The church (and every believer) is to proclaim the message of forgiveness in Christ, producing reconciliation with God. This is called EVANGELISM. It happens publicly and personally when people are loved and confronted with Jesus—his message and mission.

2: The church (and every believer) is to help people break the bonds that hold and oppress them, helping restore, in them, God’s original creation. This is called MINISTRY and happens through prayer, healing, and practical help. This leads to spiritual, emotional, and physical freedom.

3: The church (and every believer) is to help people live a new, resurrected life in Christ, through the filling and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. This is called SPIRITUAL FORMATION. It happens through teaching, Bible study, spiritual disciplines, and spiritual direction.

4: The church (and every believer) is to be a counter-cultural force in the community, in the nation, and in the world. This is called LOVE and is to be expressed locally, regionally, and globally, through compassion, mercy, and justice.

5: The church (and every believer) is to be God’s community of broken-yet-healing people that provides love, support, and accountability for each other. This is called TRUE COMMUNITY and happens through worship, fellowship, feasting, and Holy Communion, and multiplies through church planting and congregational vitality.

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The Message and Mission of Jesus (DKB)

Post a Comment » Written on July 15th, 2011     
Filed under: CO-OP, Congregational Vitality, Leadership, Reflection Questions

Recently, I was in attendance at a peer workshop for pastors participating in the Co-Op: Coaching of Pastors ministry of the Evangelical Covenant Church. This was a phenomenal time for me as the topics taught on ranged from “Organizing Your Personal Life”, “Learning to Delegate”, as well as “What Established Churches and Church Plants can learn from each other”. One highlight from the weekend for me was when we spent time focusing on the Message and Mission of Jesus. Continue Reading »




What do you see? (DKB)

Post a Comment » Written on July 6th, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality, Inspiring Stories, Vision

I enjoy photography. Whenever I travel to someplace new, or just find myself wandering around with free time on my hands, I typically can find a reason to take out my camera for a few shots. While architecture (bridges, buildings, etc.) has been my primary area of focus, I am trying to include more still life, specifically human interaction.

What I have started to realize while taking photographs is that the image I see through the view finder is often very different from what I see from my “naked” eye, which is different still from the image I capture upon pressing the shutter release. The human eye can only focus on a singular point (focal point). While this happens, all the rest in the field of vision is blurred, or peripheral. Continue Reading »




Daniel Booker – Coordinator of Congregational Vitality: A new voice to the blog

Post a Comment » Written on May 23rd, 2011     
Filed under: Congregational Vitality
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Hello to all of our regular blog followers, and to those why are visiting for the first, second, or third time!

Over the past few months there have been many changes visible in our blog. We have a new look, have transitioned all of our downloadable resources to our webpage (www.covchurch.org/vitality), and have tried to make navigation on our blog easier. This is all done with the hope that we will be able to better highlight the journey of vitality as we observe it and also share stories of congregational vitality as encouragement.

About one year ago, I was brought on as Coordinator of Congregational Vitality, serving alongside John Wenrich in the Department of Church Growth and Evangelism as we seek to see every congregation in the ECC become a “healthy missional” congregation. It is my privilege to provide management and organization of the various Congregational Vitality ministry resources. Continue Reading »




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